Lebanon Complete Escape Act to End Jordan's Unbeaten Run

Zaid Abbas had a chance to win it for Jordan, but he missed two free-throws and handed Lebanon the win, 77-76, in the Asian Qualifiers third window.

Abbas rebounded the basketball after an Ali Haidar miss and was fouled by naturalized Lebanese big man Sammy Young with just 4 seconds left on the clock. Abbas, who split his two freebies earlier in the game, had a golden chance to snare the lead from the home team, but he missed both charity shots. Bawji grabbed the ball off the second miss, and Lebanon held on for their fourth win in five matches.

The Cedars completed their mission to avenge an earlier loss to Jordan in the first window, but they needed to win by at least 4 points to finish on top of their group. With this result, Jordan can still finish atop Group C if they defeat India on 1 July.

The game marked the return to FIBA Asia play of Jordanian center Ahmad Al Dwairi. The 7ft 0in (2.13m) center gave a good account of himself in his first game since last seeing action for Jordan in 2014, scoring 16 points, hauling down 6 rebounds and blocking 2 shots. Four other Jordanians scored in double-digits, led by Mahmoud Abdeen's dozen points.

Lebanon, for their part, try for their fifth Asian Qualifiers win on 1 July as they host West Asia rivals Syria at the Nouhad Nawfal Sports Complex.